


Time by Dimension (Book One: Freljord)

by slowmobanana



Series: Time by Dimension [1]
Category: League of Legends
Genre: Action/Adventure, Comedy, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-17
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-20 19:09:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,221
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17028348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/slowmobanana/pseuds/slowmobanana
Summary: There has been foretold an Armageddon of unimaginable destruction. Gods, Ascended, Voidwalkers, Darkin, and mortals alike face extinction from a force no one can identify.Being the first to know the threat and act upon it, Ekko and Zoe must travel across Runeterra and locate the Legends of the world in order to quell the evils that rest within the planet and singlehandedly change the course of their reality --- before all is lost.&&&Ekko and Zoe find themselves traversing the harsh and frozen wastelands of Freljord in order to unite the three warring tribes and discover the evil trapped within the ice.





	Time by Dimension (Book One: Freljord)

**Author's Note:**

> So, it kinda just jumps into the story but this is what Shattersong was supposed to become. However, I felt the beginning was taking too long so I kinda just got into it. If you're confused how Zoe and Ekko meet, take a read at Shattersong (which I might finish so that it can be a "prequel" to this). I also just have been baking this idea for freakin' ever and wanted to write it. So, yeah! Enjoy.

Fate told me I’m not gonna make it to the end.

          Every extra second, every second chance leads up to the same inevitable, unavoidable end. Zilean made it clear that the moment I agreed to help him and Zoe assemble the League, my fate would be sealed to a singular moment in time; frozen, unmoving, certain.

          “It’s not even that bad,” Zoe said casually when she followed me back to Zaun. “At least the world won’t end, so it’ll be for the greater good!” (Neither she or Zilean would tell me what it was.) “It might even be fun! Might.”

          So why did I agree to help Zoe and Zilian create the League and save the world? 

          What makes you think I had a choice?

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

The wind whipped wild over frozen snow drifts, beneath his scarf and down the front of his shirt. If he could pull his teeth apart, he’d curse the icy mountains of Freljord, but his face was frozen in a permanent squinted scowl, lips pulled back and blue and snow built on his eyelashes until he could no longer blink without his eyes sticking shut.

          Behind him, Zoe was wailing about the mechanics of the universe working against them in favour of the Watchers, the Drakin, the Ascended, and all those sort of things that might end the world.

          It wasn’t helping.

          Somewhere in the invisible river of time, Zilean was watching them, probably with his head in his hands because of course Ekko and Zoe were caught in a snowstorm without proper attire and of course they would die before they recruited their first legend. Zilean insisted they start in Freljord, for the hardened warriors of the North would be a powerful negotiation tool when it came to recruiting other legends. Before they could discuss what it would take to convince the three Queens to join them, Zoe opened a portal to the Freljord mountains beneath Ekko’s feet and jumped in after him.

          Apparently, Zoe didn’t do much planning.

          They appeared at the summit of a mountain range that stretched farther than Ekko’s eye could see. Blanketed in pure, eternal snow, Ekko would have watched the wind steal his breath away from the sheer beauty of the place but it took mere seconds for the ice and cold to settle in and  _ then _ Ekko learned Zoe could only portal once in a little while. Now they were stuck in a raging ice storm, unprepared for any form of cold. (Just a few hours ago, Ekko was in the warm, foggy embrace of Zaun.)

          “Zoe. Shut. Up. Please,” he managed through grit teeth.

          “Next time, coats,” she muttered.

          “Can’t we just… portal out of here and… get a coat? Or something?”

          “I’m too cold! I can’t move my arms!”

          “Zoe, we’re gonna die!”

          “Give me your scarf thing, I’m so cold!”

          “If I do, will you open a portal?”

          “Oh! Yes! Of course! Probably. Maybe. I’m just… so cold!”

          “Zoe!”

          “Ekko! Ah, stop saying my name!”

          “ _ Zoe! _ ”

          With the power of rage, he turned and started towards her. She screamed, slowly running away from him in the most pathetic game of chase he’d ever embarked on. “No, don’t kill me! I promise I’ll open a portal, don’t kill me, I’m too young to die!”

          “You’re a thousand years old!”

          Something, he assumed a shard of ice, whipped passed his face and Ekko stopped. Frozen thighs groaned and he could feel his muscles start to freeze over; movement was the only generated heat and in its absence, his body began to protest. He forced himself to turn to the origin of the unidentified flying object.

          Stood upon a terrece Ekko mistook for a snowdrift, a woman dressed in minimal clothing glared down upon the duo with a composure that cared not for the cold and it made Ekko sick with jealousy. She was pale skinned and white-haired and didn't seem entirely mortal. The bow in her hand was held by slender but firm fingers. Ekko still wasn't sure what she had just fired at him. “Halt there, boy,” she said firmly. “Leave her be.”

          “Ha ha!” Zoe spat, finding the strength to pull down the lower eyelid on her right eye and stick out her tongue. (Strength she  _ could’ve _ used to open a portal out of here.) “You’re in trouble now!”

          Ekko turned slowly to the woman and glared wordlessly at her. It didn’t take long for her to conclude they were allies, not enemies, and she lowered her bow, her expression shifting from angry queen to concerned mother. From behind her, a small entourage of other people emerged from over the hill and joined her on the terrace. A particular man approached her side, eyes focused on the slowly freezing children. “Fetch some furs and soup for these children,” she said to him, curiosity and concern equal in her tone. “We’ll take them to camp.”

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

          Ekko pulled the chain of the Z-Drive and the thing whirred to life, though the glow was tamed by the fur blanket draped over his shoulders and down his back. Beside him, Zoe was kicking her legs excitedly as they dangled from the chair, holding the warm tea in both her hands and too comfortable under her own fur blanket. Ashe sat across from them, still unbothered by the cold.

          “I’m Zoe,” the aspect began excitedly. “and he’s Ekko, and we’re on a top secret mission to save the world!”

          Ashe gently set down her mug of tea, a special brand made by the Avarosans for the frostbitten and hyperthermic to warm them after a hunt. (She got into detail of their tea as she made it, probably as small talk to comfort him and Zoe in a strange place.) “Save the world,” she repeated, but her tone muddied the line between question and statement with painting it with all the colours of disbelief. “From… what?”

          “Ah,” Zoe hesitated, turned to Ekko, then back to Ashe. “We’re… not really  _ sure _ yet.”

          Ashe’s eyes darted from her to him, as if he would have any more answers than what Zoe had already said. Ekko took a deep breath. “So, we’re kind of on a wild goose chase. We know something is coming and we need an army, we just don’t know what for yet.”

          She nodded, not any more convinced. It was hard to tell what she was thinking with such an ice cold face. “I see.” She tapped her fingers against the mug. “And how big is your army so far?” There was a painful pause as he and Zoe exchanged a glance then smiled awkwardly at her. Her face finally moved to lift the eyebrows up in disbelief. The corners of her lips pulled upward and an amused chuckled left her lips. “I see,” she said again and Ekko had a bad feeling. “Tell me, where are you from? I will have a guard escort you to the border of Freljord. These frozen lands are no place for children not born of this winter.”

          “Hey, we’re not just children!” Ekko started quickly.

          Zoe added, “I’m not even a child! I’ll have you know, I’m almost a thousand years old!”

          He could feel Ashe’s patience start to wane, if only a bit. “We don’t have time to be playing games,” she began, speaking as if to appeal to the logical side of them. “We have our own war to take part in. I cannot begin to understand how two strangers arrive to Freljord without fur or food and journey this far from the border and survive---”

          “We didn’t travel, we teleported. Duh!” Zoe threw her arms in the air and the fur blanket fell from her back. “Cause it’s something I can do? See?” To her right, a portal opened. She reached in, felt around, then pulled an ice cream cone from it. She held it up and grinned, only for something to reach out of the portal, grasp the ice cream, and pull it back through. The portal shut promptly. Zoe huffed.

          “Magic then.” Ashe picked up her mug. “I will dress you in furs and you are welcome to travel with us, but know that we will hear no talk of the end of the world.”

          “But--”

          “But nothing.” She was still cold. For her attitude, she had no anger. “Now, tell me. Where were you going?” She addressed Ekko and Zoe took to pouting neath the fur blanket again.

          Ekko hesitated as if he had forgotten their mission. “We’re looking for someone called the Fury of the North.”

          Ashe’s eyes narrowed. “Why?”

          “We were gonna try to--” He couldn’t help the fearful grin that happened across his face because her eyes narrowed to sharp points that could’ve been aimed for his jugular. “recruit her?”

          “If you wish to ally yourself with Sejuani, you may leave the premises of this camp and not return.”

          “Oh, uh,” Ekko scrambled to save it. “No, well, it’s not like that--”

          “And how is it like?” she argued. “She is a warmonger, leaves behind the people of her kind for her own benefit. The blood spilled upon the snow is unnecessary and yet she continues down a path of war and needless death. So, if you wish nothing more than mindless violence, then she is the very person you must recruit. But understand that I am not one of such senselessness. My only wish is to unite the Freljord and bring peace to all those who live here. Be weary when choosing your friends. Children are not warriors, so trust in my wisdom.”

          Ekko straightened his back. “Trust in  _ your _ wisdom? You sound like every single adult I know.” He set down the tea and folded his arms. “I may not be a thousand years old, but you can be assured I’ve made more mistakes than you will  _ ever _ have the pleasure of making.”

          “That is a bold statement,” Ashe replied. “And how do you plan to prove that?”

          With a grin, he unfolded his arms and rested his fingers on the back of his hand. “Like this.”

          He twisted the dial. The world slowed to a crawl, then a stop. Reality shattered, he could hear it muted underneath the whirring of the time machine. Lightning arced from the Z-Drive and cut through the air. Everything was tinged gentle blue and white and the universe began to wind backward through the expansive nothingness. Involuntarily, he felt his body move, exactly the opposite he had done before. He crossed his arms, uncrossed his arms, picked up the tea.

          In a moment, he was returned to the second he pulled the chain, the metal particularly cold after holding the tea again. The rewind stopped, time paused, then slowly started forward again. He let go of the chain, it returned to the drive.

          “I’m Zoe,” the aspect began excitedly. “and he’s Ekko, and we’re on a top secret mission to save the world!”

          Ashe gently set down her mug of tea. “Save the world,” she repeated. “From… what?”

          “Ah,” Zoe hesitated, turned to Ekko, then back to Ashe. “We’re… not really  _ sure _ yet.”

          Ashe’s eyes darted from her to him. Ekko took a deep breath. She mentioned before peace and unification and her distaste towards senseless violence. Themes he’d become familiar with but didn’t quite believe in; but the name of the game was not honesty. “We don’t know what we’re fighting,” he began. “but our hope is to  _ unite _ people for our cause. We may not know what we’re facing, but we believe that the power of people as a  _ whole _ may be stronger than if we were to face this potential threat without it. If it turns out to be nothing, then at least we will have  _ peace _ in the people.”

          There was a long pause. He glanced sideways to Zoe, her eyes squinted in suspicion. He couldn’t help the confident smirk that grace his lips, certain to soften it when he turned back to Ashe again. A thousand times he had done something like this that silvering his tongue took fewer chances now than ever before. “That is a… noble cause,” she said at last. “However, we have our own war to fight in.”

          Ekko nodded. “As you’ve said.”

          “What?”

          Oh, shit.

          “Uh, sorry. Rumours. I meant as I’ve heard.” Now both Zoe and Ashe had suspicious eyes on him and he hated that. “Anyways,” he continued, keeping his confidence. “The idea is that if we could create a truce between all of the--” Uh, what were the people of Freljord called? He went for a name. “Freljordians, well, you would have your peace and we would have our army.”

          Ashe raised an eyebrow. “And you think I haven’t tried that? How could two children possibly influence a long war such as ours?”

          Again with the children thing.

          Zoe added, “I’m not even a child! I’ll have you know I’m a thousand years old!”

          Ekko leaned forward, setting his elbows on his knees. “What would it take to convince you we’re the real deal? Make it good, ‘cause I love a challenge.”

          Zoe lit up, eagerly setting down her tea. There was a long moment as Ashe looked between the two of them, then she drew a deep breath. “I may have an idea.”


End file.
